Warriors' Jordan Bell on how it's been tough handling his rehab

Want Warriors news in your inbox? Sign up for the free DubsDaily newsletter.

PORTLAND, Ore. — On the surface, Warriors rookie forward Jordan Bell appeared in a great mood.

He returned to a city nearly two hours from where he played college basketball at University of Oregon. He reminisced on his time with the the Ducks that entailed becoming the program’s all-time leader in blocks. He also took countless jumpers following morning shootaround.

Yet, Bell has fought internal frustration for understandable reasons. When the Warriors (44-13) play the Portland Trail Blazers (31-26) on Wednesday, it will mark the 13th consecutive game Bell will miss because of inflammation in his left ankle. The Warriors plan to reevaluate Bell next week at some point after the NBA All-Star break.

Advertisement

“It’s been tough. I obviously want to play and practice with the team,” Bell said. “But it’s also been a learning moment being able to watch the game, observe everything and see how we’re playing and see what the things I can bring when I come back.”

To subscribe to the Planet Dubs podcast, click here.

After giving the Chicago Bulls $3.5 million for the rights to their No. 38 pick in the 2017 NBA draft, the Warriors used that selection on Bell. Since then, the Warriors have become enamored with Bell’s athleticism, passing and long-term potential as a versatile forward. Though Bell has averaged 5.1 points while shooting 66.4 percent from the field and 3.9 rebounds in 14.4 minutes, his role has become inconsistent for varying reasons.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr likes to change his frontcourt rotation based off of matchups, either to take advantage of Kevon Looney’s familiarity with personnel or JaVale McGee’s length. But the Warriors have also continuously preached to Bell about sharpening his fundamentals and preparation.

“Just continuing to improve,” Kerr said. “He’s a rookie so he’s learning about the NBA and he’s learning personnel tendencies and that kind of thing. You want to see daily work and daily improvement.”

Bell also has reported improvement with his injury. Bell noted that he’s “progressing” after spending the past week completing non-contact drills, such as shooting, running and stretching exercises.

Amid his frustration, Bell at least has some perspective. Bell had surgery to treat a broken right foot at the end of his freshman season at the University of Oregon.

“When I broke my foot it wasn’t the season, it was the offseason. That was boring as hell,” Bell said. “NBA life is kind of easier to be hurt right now than college.”